{"id":31976,"date":"2026-01-22T23:06:07","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T13:06:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/?p=31976"},"modified":"2026-01-23T09:08:35","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T23:08:35","slug":"aussie-engineers-test-the-limits-with-new-timber-window-systems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/aussie-engineers-test-the-limits-with-new-timber-window-systems\/","title":{"rendered":"Aussie Engineers Test the Limits with New Timber Window Systems"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Australia’s timber engineers are developing new window systems that use new types of timber that not only meet 7\u2011Star NATHERS energy ratings but also excel in high\u2011wind environments. Funded by Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI), a $200\u2011million\u2011plus institute backed by $100 million in Commonwealth funding, the AFWI\u2013AGWA Modernising Timber Windows project<\/a><\/em> is looking beyond traditional hardwood timbers \u2013 like Vic Ash <\/em>\u2013 to develop the next generation of windows that can take the fight to aluminium and uPVC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, the timber window industry has been stuck in a bind. Increasingly tougher building codes have raised performance expectations just as supplies of traditional hardwoods have dwindled, allowing aluminium to overtake timber as the dominant window material in recent decades<\/a>. Yet up to 200 Australian joinery companies still manufacture timber windows and doors \u2014 a supply chain that has endured despite very little change in approved designs over decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the National Construction Code, manufacturers are required to either test every window they produce or rely on a tiny set of approved designs \u2014 just four in total, none of which reflect today’s demands for glazing, wind, or energy. As a result, it has left the timber window value chain with little flexibility and no room to innovate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the AFWI-funded project is looking to break that deadlock.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Working with the Australian Glass & Window Association, the Australian Timber Development Association is generating new structural and performance data across a wide range of solid and engineered wood products. And instead of relying on outdated assumptions about which species \u201cshould\u201d be used, they are testing how different timbers behave under modern loads, how they interact with insulated glass units, and \u2014 crucially \u2014 how they perform under AS 2047<\/a>, Australia’s mandatory performance standard for windows and external glazed doors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTimber windows haven’t fallen behind because the material isn’t capable,\u201d according to Kylan Low, the Timber Development Association’s engineer, who worked with Jesse Ross, an engineer at the Australian Glass & Window Association, to bring the project to life. \u201cThey’ve fallen behind because the data hasn’t kept up with changes in codes, glazing, and timber supply.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis project is about closing that gap through proper testing and giving the industry tools it can actually use.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In total, 10 timber suppliers from across Australia are involved in the project, including Australian Sustainable Hardwoods (ASH) \u2014 the country’s largest hardwood processor <\/a>\u2014 and the rapidly expanding Pentarch Group<\/a>. According to Daniel Wright, ASH’s National Business Development Director, ASH\u2019s Plantation Oak, a high\u2011value engineered product made from Shining Gum<\/em> that would otherwise be exported or used for woodchip, is now undergoing testing. \u201cFrom our perspective, Plantation Oak is moving from development to the mainstream with MASSLAM, and it is well-suited to markets like windows,\u201d Wright told Wood Central. \u201cThat’s why we are involved in this project.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Low said the next tranche of tests, due in the coming weeks, will be pivotal. Speaking to Wood Central, he said the data will help identify the best species and designs that are ‘fit for purpose’. “It\u2019s the kind of information the industry has been craving for a very long time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work could give manufacturers and joiners the flexibility they\u2019ve lacked for years. And with traditional species like Vic Ash<\/em> becoming much harder to source, the project\u2019s species\u2011substitution validation approach could be one of its most important contributions \u2014 allowing joiners and manufacturers to operate ‘business as usual’ as availability changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the windows are evolving, too. Low said profiles and details are being redesigned to accommodate heavier glazing and higher wind pressures, with an emphasis on manufacturability and realistic supply chains. The aim, he said, is to ensure that timber windows are fully aligned with the buildings they serve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of 30 research projects through its National Open Call and its three research centres at the University of Tasmania, the University of Melbourne and the University of the Sunshine Coast, AFWI is fast becoming one of Australia’s largest research institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month<\/a>, Dr Joseph Lawrence – AFWI’s executive director – said the $23 billion dollar forest value chain has a \u201conce\u2011in\u2011a\u2011generation\u201d opportunity to partner with world\u2011leading researchers and accelerate innovation at scale. \u201cIt makes us one of the largest research institutes in Australia, currently, which is very significant,\u201d Dr Lawrence said. \u201cThe intent is always for industry and the research sector to join hands with the government to get the best return on investment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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